News / National
Girls turn to panning to raise school fees
17 Jan 2014 at 08:30hrs | Views
Tthe little known Makaha Business Centre in Kotwa Growth Point has transformed into a hub as "gold money" exchanges hands. The lure of the gold money is so powerful that even primary school-going children have joined in the dangerous but lucrative trade.
Despite the health hazards involved and the risk of landing themselves in trouble with the police or the vicious reptiles that they occasionally meet on the river beds, Anna Bondamakara and Fortunate Kamungeremu of Kamungeremu Village are already "hard-core" panners at the tender age of 14.
Dressed in a tattered blue dress and a protruding blouse that once had a white colour but has since turned brown due to the nature of her "trade", Anna goes about her business earnestly along Nyarumwahuku stream near Makaha Secondary School as mud drips all over her body.
Armed with the tools of the trade, a wooden bowl locally known as zamba - which is used to sift gold from other particles, Anna surfs (kuwonga in local dialect) for the precious metal during a scorching afternoon.
Anna and Fortunate nearly bolted when this reporter approached them. They have since developed danger-detection instincts because of the high-risk nature of their trade.
It was difficult to pin them down for a quick interview as they presumed this reporter was a police detail.
After almost 30 minutes of cajoling, the duo began to warm up and eventually agreed to make the talk short as "they wanted to get back to business quickly."
It soon came out that poverty and the desire to emulate elder gold panners, whose lives have changed for the better as a result of the spoils they get, has led the little girls into this risky trade.
"Our parents do not have sufficient resources to cater for us and it becomes even more difficult during this back to school period because our requirements are unaffordable.
"Gold panning is the in-thing here and our parents are aware we are involved in it. With the money we get from selling the few points of gold we find, we can buy ourselves school stationery and some other goodies," reveals Anna as Fortunate clandestinely pokes her in a bid to stop her from exposing more details.
Both girls are Form 1 pupils at Makaha Secondary School and reluctantly outlined their ordeal as they try to balance school, attending to maize fields at home and gold panning.
"I wake up at 5am and walk a few kilometres to school. When school ends I rush back home to join other family members in the field before winding up the day at the river.
"During school holidays we usually leave for the river around 9am and return well after 5pm. We have to do it for survival and what motivates us more is the elder panners whose lives have changed for the better," chipped in a rather sceptical Fortunate.
Their daily pickings fluctuate between US$2,50 and US$3,50, paltry returns one would presume, but enough to make them sustain their needs.
"We usually find an average of two points a day after a laborious trail down the river. We sell to elders in the village who give us less than $2 per point of gold, but we know they will realise more when they sell to the real buyers," revealed Fortunate.
In gold terms, a point is equivalent to a tenth of a gram and for these girls and other panners it's worth risking life for.
"It is dangerous for real because the police usually raid the rivers, confiscate our zambas and arrest us. When the police raid we usually rush into that mountain (pointing at the nearby Chipangure mountain) where we hide, sometimes well into the night. We are aware there are snakes in that mountain, but one cannot afford to be caught.
"Those arrested pay a fine of US$20 and the police confiscate both the gold and the zambas," revealed Anna.
A teacher at a nearby Donzwe Primary School who refused to be identified revealed that they were having problems with pupils who are bunking lessons for gold panning.
"Sometimes these kids will have to choose between attending school and gold panning. The lure of money attracts these kids to the rivers at the expense of their educational lessons," said the teacher.
Police in the area confirmed they have made several arrests but were quick to admit that the "war" with gold panners was likely to go for eternity.
Despite the health hazards involved and the risk of landing themselves in trouble with the police or the vicious reptiles that they occasionally meet on the river beds, Anna Bondamakara and Fortunate Kamungeremu of Kamungeremu Village are already "hard-core" panners at the tender age of 14.
Dressed in a tattered blue dress and a protruding blouse that once had a white colour but has since turned brown due to the nature of her "trade", Anna goes about her business earnestly along Nyarumwahuku stream near Makaha Secondary School as mud drips all over her body.
Armed with the tools of the trade, a wooden bowl locally known as zamba - which is used to sift gold from other particles, Anna surfs (kuwonga in local dialect) for the precious metal during a scorching afternoon.
Anna and Fortunate nearly bolted when this reporter approached them. They have since developed danger-detection instincts because of the high-risk nature of their trade.
It was difficult to pin them down for a quick interview as they presumed this reporter was a police detail.
After almost 30 minutes of cajoling, the duo began to warm up and eventually agreed to make the talk short as "they wanted to get back to business quickly."
It soon came out that poverty and the desire to emulate elder gold panners, whose lives have changed for the better as a result of the spoils they get, has led the little girls into this risky trade.
"Our parents do not have sufficient resources to cater for us and it becomes even more difficult during this back to school period because our requirements are unaffordable.
"Gold panning is the in-thing here and our parents are aware we are involved in it. With the money we get from selling the few points of gold we find, we can buy ourselves school stationery and some other goodies," reveals Anna as Fortunate clandestinely pokes her in a bid to stop her from exposing more details.
Both girls are Form 1 pupils at Makaha Secondary School and reluctantly outlined their ordeal as they try to balance school, attending to maize fields at home and gold panning.
"I wake up at 5am and walk a few kilometres to school. When school ends I rush back home to join other family members in the field before winding up the day at the river.
"During school holidays we usually leave for the river around 9am and return well after 5pm. We have to do it for survival and what motivates us more is the elder panners whose lives have changed for the better," chipped in a rather sceptical Fortunate.
Their daily pickings fluctuate between US$2,50 and US$3,50, paltry returns one would presume, but enough to make them sustain their needs.
"We usually find an average of two points a day after a laborious trail down the river. We sell to elders in the village who give us less than $2 per point of gold, but we know they will realise more when they sell to the real buyers," revealed Fortunate.
In gold terms, a point is equivalent to a tenth of a gram and for these girls and other panners it's worth risking life for.
"It is dangerous for real because the police usually raid the rivers, confiscate our zambas and arrest us. When the police raid we usually rush into that mountain (pointing at the nearby Chipangure mountain) where we hide, sometimes well into the night. We are aware there are snakes in that mountain, but one cannot afford to be caught.
"Those arrested pay a fine of US$20 and the police confiscate both the gold and the zambas," revealed Anna.
A teacher at a nearby Donzwe Primary School who refused to be identified revealed that they were having problems with pupils who are bunking lessons for gold panning.
"Sometimes these kids will have to choose between attending school and gold panning. The lure of money attracts these kids to the rivers at the expense of their educational lessons," said the teacher.
Police in the area confirmed they have made several arrests but were quick to admit that the "war" with gold panners was likely to go for eternity.
Source - sundaymail
